New Padrón 1964 Anniversary Ships This Week

The
fattest ever Padrón 1964 Anniversary Series cigar was unveiled this
weekend, and it’s going to ship to retailers this week. The Padrón 1964
Anniversary Series No. 4, a substantial smoke measuring 6 1/2 inches
long with a 60 ring gauge, is ready to reach cigar retailers.

The
team from Cigar Aficionado smoked preview versions of the box-pressed cigar this weekend in Orlando at the International Premium Cigar & Pipe Retailers
trade show. It had an effortless draw, big, rich flavor and notes of
cocoa and vanilla, familiar to Padrón smokers. The cigar will have a
suggested retail price of $20.

Most
No. 4 sizes in the cigar world are diminutive, but these are quite
large. They are the first new Padrón Anniversary shape since the launch
of the Toro two years ago.

The
cigar gets its name from the December 4 birthday of Saint Barbara, or
Santa Barbara, a Catholic saint held dear by Cubans. “Cubans feel she is
a protector,” said Padrón president Jorge Padrón. “When my father was in Cuba, he prayed to Santa Barbara to help him get out.”

The
elder Padrón left Cuba on April 1, 1961, and went to Spain. He waited
several months before finding a way to get to the United States, and in
late November of that year he set sail for America. “The boat that I
came on arrived in New York on December 4,” said José Orlando Padrón,
speaking through his son Jorge. “The birthday of this patron saint.”

St.
Barbara is revered by many, not only Cubans. According to legend, she
was beheaded by her father in the 7th century, and he was struck down by
lightning after committing his crime. She has long been associated with
lightning and explosions, and is prayed to by soldiers, particularly
artillerymen, and is also known as a patron saint of miners. José
Orlando Padrón worked in a copper mine as a younger man in Cuba.